How This Street Light Pole Is Fabricated and Checked

A tapered lighting column is made from flat plate rolled into a cone and welded along its length. The two operations that decide whether it is right when it arrives are the development of the plate for the taper, and the control of distortion through welding and galvanizing, because a column twelve metres long has a great deal of opportunity to move.

The column is welded and then galvanized, and the welding sequence is planned around distortion – see welding for how heat input is managed on long parts.

What Can Change on Street Light Pole Without New Tooling

The column is rolled from plate, so height and diameters are open. The items below are the ones that affect the development of the plate or the tooling.

Short Answers on Street Light Pole

How is the taper produced?

The plate is developed as a taper before it is rolled, which means the flat shape is not a rectangle. When that shape is rolled and the two long edges are brought together, the result is a cone with the base diameter at one end and the top diameter at the other. The developed form is calculated from the two diameters and the height, and it is worth knowing that this is the step where a mistake is expensive – the plate is cut to that shape, so if the development is wrong the column has the wrong diameters and there is nothing to adjust. This is why the diameters are confirmed against the development before cutting rather than after rolling.

How do you stop a long column distorting in the galvanizing bath?

Distortion is managed rather than eliminated. Three things help: controlling the welding sequence so the heat input is spread and stresses do not build in one place, checking straightness before the dip so that any existing bend is known, and checking and correcting after the dip because the bath temperature relieves locked-in stress and the part moves. That is why straightness is a post-galvanizing check on this product. It is also worth knowing that a hot-dip galvanized column is very difficult to straighten cold without damaging the coating, so the aim is to get the fabrication right so that only small corrections are needed.

Is the base plate welded or bolted on?

Welded, in the standard arrangement, and that introduces a design consideration worth understanding. The weld around the base plate creates a heat affected zone in the column wall right where the bending moment from wind load is greatest. So the wall thickness and the weld size at the base are not arbitrary – they are the dimensions that determine whether the column can carry its design moment. If your project has a structural requirement for the column, give us the wind load and the design standard at quotation and the base detail will be discussed on that basis. As with everything structural on this site, the calculation and its sign-off sit outside what we manufacture.

Send the height, the top and base diameters, the base plate bolt pattern and the wind load your project is designed to. The plate development and the base detail are both settled before cutting. Send your specification for a quotation.

Long parts are packed so the galvanized surfaces cannot rub against each other in transit; more in the packaging guide.

The Handhole Is the Weakest Part of a Pole and It Is Also Necessary

A lighting column needs an opening at the base for cabling and for the connection, and that opening removes material from the section that carries the highest bending moment. Every other part of the pole is sized for the load; the handhole is the exception, and it is why poles that survive wind loads still fail at the base. The answer is not to omit the opening, it is to detail it: the opening is reinforced, its corners are radiused rather than square, and its position is chosen so it does not sit at the point of maximum stress alone.

• A square corner in a cut-out is a crack starter. Radiused corners cost nothing at the laser stage and they are the cheapest fatigue life available on this product.
• The handhole cover is a separate part and it is a security item. A cover that can be removed with a common tool is a maintenance problem for the operator.
• Cable entry below the handhole should be detailed so water cannot track along the cable into the column. This is the most common cause of internal corrosion on a galvanized pole.

Base Plate Details: Why the Anchor Pattern Matters More Than the Plate

The base plate carries the whole moment from the column into the foundation, and its thickness matters less than people expect. What matters is the anchor pattern: the bolt circle diameter sets the lever arm that resists the overturning moment, and the plate is mostly there to transfer the load between the column and the anchors. A larger plate with the bolts close together is weaker than a smaller plate with the bolts spread wide, which is not the intuitive result and which is why base details should be calculated rather than copied.

The second detail is the weld between the column and the plate, which is a fillet weld on the most heavily loaded joint on the pole, and it is usually the joint with the least access for inspection. We weld and check these as a structural joint rather than a cosmetic one. Pole height, top and base diameter and the wind and luminaire loading all have to be specified together; EN 40 and AASHTO are standards the pole is supplied to, and the type testing that demonstrates compliance is carried out by the pole supplier or a test house. Lead time is quoted after drawing review and process confirmation.

Payment Terms

How a project is paid for is agreed before production starts, and the structure that applies to your order is stated on the quotation and on the order confirmation, so there is no ambiguity later.

• 30% advance payment with the order and the 70% balance before shipment — our standard structure.
• 70% advance payment with the order and the 30% balance before shipment — used for some projects.
• 100% payment in advance before production starts — used for some projects.

If your finance team works to a fixed structure, say so in the first enquiry and we will confirm what applies to your order before you commit. Request a quotation.

Questions buyers ask before sending drawings

The questions that come up most often before a project starts, answered the way we answer them by email.

What do you need from me to quote Street Light Pole?

2D drawings as PDF, DWG or DXF, or 3D files as STEP, IGES or SolidWorks, together with material grade, sheet thickness, surface finish, quantity and destination country. If the drawing is not finished yet, send a photo, a sketch or the existing part instead — we review what can be measured from it and reply with the questions that still need answering.

How long does a quotation take?

Enquiries are answered within one business day. Simple laser-cut and bent parts are quoted within 24 hours. Welded frames, assembled units and multi-part structures are quoted after the drawing review and process confirmation, and the date is confirmed in our reply.

Is there a minimum order quantity?

Prototypes are made from a single piece and small batches of 10–50 pieces are routine. Prototype, first batch and repeat volume are quoted together so the numbers stay consistent as the project scales.

Can you work from a sample or a photo if I have no drawing?

Yes. Send the part itself, clear photographs with a rule or caliper in frame, or a dimensioned sketch. We measure what can be measured, list what is still undefined, and confirm it with you before production.

Send Your Drawings

Need a Similar Part?

Most enquiries that start on a page like this are not an order for Street Light Pole — they are a search for a factory that can make something like it. Send us your drawing, 3D model or sample and we will review the manufacturing process and the quotation requirements, then come back with a process plan, a price and a lead time.

We work from 2D drawings, STEP / DWG / DXF / PDF files, or a physical sample if that is all you have.

Send Your Drawings

No complete drawings yet? Describe the part, send photos or a sketch, or send a sample — we can start from there. Discuss your project.

Trade Terms and Delivery

We quote under the standard Incoterms your logistics team already works with, and build the packing and documentation around the one you choose.

• EXW — you collect from our Ningbo facility and run export clearance through your own forwarder.
• FOB Ningbo — we deliver to the vessel at Ningbo port and handle export clearance.
• CIF — we cover carriage and insurance to your named destination port.
• DDP — we handle carriage, insurance, import clearance and duties through to your door.

Send your destination country, target delivery date and preferred trade term together with the drawing. Request a quotation.

Quotation Time

We quote from your drawings. How long that takes depends on what the part asks for:

• Simple parts — quoted within 24 hours. Laser-cut blanks and bent components, supplied with complete 2D or 3D drawings. Mon–Fri, GMT+8.
• Complex assemblies — quoted after the drawing review. Payment kiosks, multi-part welded frames, enclosures with purchased hardware, or anything needing a coating or assembly trial. We confirm a quotation date once the scope is clear.

Production lead time is quoted separately, after drawing review and process confirmation. Send your drawings.

What stands behind this quotation

• Manufacturing since 20162,500 m² Ningbo plant — 3 laser cutting machines (including newer TRUMPF), 4 CNC press brakes and 10 welding stations.
• Shipped to more than 30 export marketsEnclosures, cabinets and formed parts supplied to OEM buyers across Europe, North America and Asia.
• 123 documented product casesMedical device housings, HVAC and heat pump enclosures, agricultural and livestock equipment, industrial hydraulics, material handling trolleys and EV charging cabinets.
• Factory evidence you can checkTUV Rheinland audit reference MIC-ASI243729 and Bureau Veritas reference MIC-ASR263630 available for buyer review under NDA.

Before you send drawings: an NDA is signed on request · first-article inspection is carried out before a batch continues · pricing is staged from prototype quantity to repeat volume · pre-shipment photos and packing records are prepared when the project needs them.